d glance about him as he recovered his balance assured him that pursuit would be futile. The man had darted off down a narrow turning which had led into a maze of streets. Already his rapid footsteps had ceased to echo on the pavement; he was lost by this time in the busy restless throng of Saturday night foot-passengers. The Doctor, abandoning any idea of chasing and securing him, lost not a moment in doing what he could. The short street was a new one, having on one side a neglected piece of waste land, where bricks, gravel, and mortar were flung in confusion; upon the other a row of half-finished houses. A curve at its upper end hid the thoroughfare beyond, although the sound of wheels and the hoarse cries of hucksters were audible to him as he dropped upon one knee, and gently raised the inert figure. Blood was upon it; he felt it and knew that it was staining his hand. Had no one heard that dreadful, thrilling cry but himself? It seemed not. He shouted loudly with the full power of his lungs:

"Hel

Reader Reviews

Perfectly readable tale of a middle-aged doctor's nearly disastrous love for a woman he rescues from a stabbing. The doctor and the mysterious beauty are very well characterised, as are all the incidental characters, and a certain amount of tension is reached before the conclusion. All the same, I won't be rushing to read anything else by Hungerford.

A short story about a doctor who rescues a mysterious young woman from her would be murderer and takes her to his house to recover from her stab wounds. He falls in love with her but she's not who she seems.